New injury rules Mohamed Abdelmonem out of Egypt AFCON squad

Egypt have been dealt a defensive blow ahead of AFCON 2025 after French club Nice centre-back Mohamed Abdelmonem was left out of the final squad due to injury concerns.

Team manager Ibrahim Hassan explained that the medical staff of Egypt and Nice agreed the defender would not be fully ready for the tournament in Morocco, which runs from 21 December to 18 January.​

Abdelmonem has been sidelined since suffering a cruciate ligament injury in April, and his recovery has been further delayed by a fresh calf muscle tear picked up in recent days. This new setback slowed his rehabilitation and made it impossible for him to reach the required fitness level in time for AFCON.

Hassan stressed that Abdelmonem is considered one of the national team’s key pillars and that his presence would have been a major boost to Egypt’s backline.​

The defender has stayed in close contact with head coach Hossam Hassan and the staff, expressing his desire to be with the team but accepting that his current condition does not allow it.

Egypt will now tackle Group B, where they face Zimbabwe, South Africa and Angola, without one of their most trusted central defenders.